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Monday, March 4, 2013

My top Five Marvel Characters

As anyone who reads my blog for more than five posts (or even just looks at my current background) knows, I am a huge fan of Marvel Comics. I have been since high school. So, you can probably imagine how giddy I have been for the last few years, being a huge movie buff as well.

Anyways, I thought I would take a moment and talk about who my favorite Marvel characters are. This is my list, in order, as it stands now. At any given point in my life so far, this list might look pretty different. But for now, this is my list as of today.

Captain America

When I was in high school, I was a huge fan of The Avengers, and read all of the related books, as well as the Spider-man titles (my friend was the Mutant freak, and read all of the X-books). At the time, I loved Captain America, but he was #2 after Spider-man. Then, something changed. Not sure what it was, but somewhere along the line, Cap assumed the #1 spot.

Today he is my favorite character in the MU. He’s the perfect soldier, able to use hand-to-hand combat, military tactics, and amazing physical attributes to stand toe-to-toe with anyone. Cap represents, in my mind, everything that a hero should be. And honestly, his movie is my favorite of all of the Marvel movies so far.

The Punisher

I have to admit that I have not read much Punisher in the comics. I would have brief periods where I would read one or two of his titles. And I have picked up enough knowledge of his story to be informed about him. But, recently he has moved up on my list, thanks in large part to the Thomas Jane movie.

As a character who started life as a throw-away homage to Mack Bolan, Frank Castle has grown well beyond his roots, and thanks to Garth Ennis’ run, has become a very unique and readable character. I have recently put four TPBs of Ennis’ work on hold through my local library, just so I can get more acquainted with it.

Hercules

As a scholar of Greek history, and a long-time fan of Greek mythology, Marvel’s take on Hercules is a bit of a dichotomy. On the one hand, he is almost nothing like the original, mythological character, unless a particular writer wants him to be. But, over all, Hercules is an amazing character in the MU. He is virtuous, but with a dark and dirty side. He respects authority that is earned, but has no problem bucking the system if isn’t just.

And when you add in the fact that he is one of the strongest heroes, and is willing to go toe-to-toe with anyone (including the Hulk), regardless of the risk, he just makes for such a cool character. When Jack Kirby first introduced him in the pages of Thor, he was based heavily on the Steve Reeves version of the movies. This is great because Steve’s version is still my favorite film version of the character.

Spider-man

Probably my first real comic book favorite, I have always been a Spider-man fan. The idea that a dorky teen could become one of the most powerful heroes in the Marvel universe, and yet he still has to deal with the issues inherent in being a dorky kid; this just makes for a great character. Spidey also makes a great foil for moral values, being a teen. I mean, who doesn’t know that “With great power comes great responsibility”?

I loved Sam Raimi’s first two movies, but not the third one, and I have yet to see Garfield’s take on the character. But I have watched many cartoons, and read various comic titles off and on for decades. Although some of the shows and stories are hit or miss, Spidey remains a timeless character.

Colossus

Admittedly, I have been at times a huge fan, and at others hugely indifferent to the X-Men titles. However, regardless of how I feel about the X-books, I have always loved Peter Rasputin, aka Colossus. The X-Men muscle with a heart of gold and pure soul, Piotr has always been my favorite character from those books.

I’m not up to speed on recent events, and was surprised to hear that he now possesses the power of the Juggernaut. But I about screamed like a little girl when he briefly appeared in the second movie, and found him to be the most enjoyable aspect of the third movie (which, honestly, I didn’t think was that bad).

This is my list for now. As I said, this list would (and probably will) look different at other times.